O’Rourke to back coalition with Fine Gael

FORMER Fianna Fail minister Mary O’Rourke has said her party should enter a “partnership coalition” with Fine Gael after the election, even if it is the smaller party.

O’Rourke said such an arrangement would work only if Fine Gael agreed to accept Fianna Fail as an equal partner, even if it had considerably fewer seats.

This would include a 50:50 share of cabinet seats, and equal weighting in policy formation.

The former minister’s comments come as a RedC poll today shows support for the Fine Gael-Labour coalition has dropped by a combined 5%, confirming the Sunday Times/B&A poll last weekend suggesting the two parties will fall far short of the numbers needed to form a government. The poll puts Fine Gael at 28 (-3), Labour 8 (-2), Fianna Fail 18 (+1), Sinn Fein 20 (+3), and independents 26 (+1).